Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (8th District of New York)
Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries appeared on MS NOW’s PoliticsNation, where he reiterated that Democrats are committed to lowering the high cost of living, including by stopping the reckless Trump Tariffs from harming the American people.
REV. AL SHARPTON: Joining me now is House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York. Leader Jeffries, we’re going to get to the life and legacy of Jesse Jackson in a moment, but first, I want to talk to you about the major political story today. President Trump claims today he’s boosting his global tariffs from 10 to 15% after the Supreme Court struck down most of his existing tariffs yesterday. Even some Republicans appraising to the decision. The President responded by insulting the justices who signed off on it after saying this about you. Take a listen.
RECORDING OF RYAN NOBLES, NBC NEWS: Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic Leader, has called you a wannabe king.
RECORDING OF PRESIDENT TRUMP: I call him a low-IQ individual.
RECORDING OF RYAN NOBLES, NBC NEWS: Why wouldn’t you just work with Congress to come up with a plan?
RECORDING OF PRESIDENT TRUMP: I don’t have to.
REV. AL SHARPTON: What’s your reaction to the tariff ruling and to being called low-IQ Jeffries?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, good to be with you, Rev. It certainly, in terms of the Supreme Court decision, was a big win for the American people and a big defeat for the wannabe king who did not have the authority to engage in the reckless Trump Tariffs that he has imposed effectively on the American people, hurting small businesses, hurting consumers, hurting farmers and hurting the economy. As a result of the Trump Tariffs, everyday Americans are paying thousands of dollars more in additional expense per year. Now the Supreme Court made clear that these tariffs were unlawful and unconstitutional, but the President can’t help himself, and so instead, he’s doubling and tripling down and continuing to hurt the American people. I’m less concerned about his petty, foolish and lame insults, Rev, than I am about the harm and the pain that Donald Trump continues to inflict on working class Americans, middle class Americans and everyday Americans.
REV. AL SHARPTON: Now, yesterday’s court decision pretty clearly put the ball back in Congress’s court. And while many House Republicans are reportedly relieved, Speaker Mike Johnson has already vowed to work with the President to find the best way forward on his tariff demands. The President seems to be claiming he can do whatever he wants. What are you expecting from the other side of the aisle, and how do you and your Caucus plan to respond?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, Donald Trump and Republicans, they promised to lower costs on day one of Donald Trump’s presidency. Costs aren’t going down. Costs are going up. And in fact, things are out of control in terms of the affordability crisis. And so it’s ridiculous, if you think about it, Rev, that in the face of their failures relative to the economy, we’re seeing Speaker Johnson want to further impose these Trump Tariffs on the American people, find a different scheme to do it that we believe ultimately will probably be declared unlawful. And so, we’re going to continue to resist this effort by the President, which is not anchored in working with a bipartisan group of people, Democrats and Republicans and people in the House and the Senate, to actually lower the high cost of living, lower housing costs, lower the cost of groceries or goods or healthcare or child care or utility bills, all of which right now have been out of control under Donald Trump’s presidency.
REV. AL SHARPTON: Now, while all of this is happening, Trump says he’s considering a limited military strike on Iran to force the country to accept the deal on its nuclear program. He’s given Iran a two-week window for negotiations. Its foreign minister says it’s preparing a counterproposal. But U.S. military vessels have been building up in the region for weeks. And just like his tariff policy, none of the buildup appears to have gone through Congress for input or approval. Is a conflict inevitable at this point, Leader Jeffries?
LEADER JEFFRIES: The last thing that we need right now, given all the problems that we have in America, all of the damage that Donald Trump has done to everyday Americans, all of his failures that we’ve seen from day one of his presidency, is for Donald Trump to get us into another failed foreign war or reckless adventure that will ultimately, particularly in the Middle East, cost us lives and cost us billions, if not trillions, of dollars in taxpayer resources. And so, we’re going to continue to proceed in the same way that we have before, find a bipartisan path forward to try and stop Donald Trump’s ability to unilaterally strike anyone in the world in the absence of congressional approval, which, of course, is required by the Constitution.
REV. AL SHARPTON: Is Speaker Johnson on the same page?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Speaker Johnson is definitively not on the same page. So what we’re going to have to do is what we’ve done on a variety of different other issues, including, most recently, pass legislation in the House over the objection of Mike Johnson to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits by three years. All 213 Democrats at the time joined by 17 Republicans. We most recently, before the Supreme Court acted, led by Congressman Greg Meeks, we were able to take down one of Donald Trump’s initial tariffs that had been imposed unlawfully, in our view, on Canada. And we’re going to have to find a path forward, joined by just a handful of Republicans, to assert the principle that, absent explicit authorization for the use of military force, Donald Trump should not and must not strike Iran.
REV. AL SHARPTON: Now, midterms are just nine months away, and several Republican-led states are entering their primary seasons with gerrymandered voting maps at Trump’s request, as he threatens voter ID with or without Congress, and Republicans push the SAVE Act, which could radically restrict voter access. All of this, as the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on the future of Section Two of the Voting Rights Act. How worried are you about the impact of all of this for Democrats in November?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, it’s an all-hands-on-deck effort to make sure that there’s a free and fair election in November. First, we needed to stop his gerrymandering scheme, where, effectively, they wanted to alter congressional maps in red states only, all across the country, as part of their effort to rig the midterm elections. We’ve stopped that, effectively, from happening, and so they’ve run out of gas as it relates to that effort. But that doesn’t mean it’s over. As you pointed out, Rev, what we’re going to see is this effort to try to engage in voter suppression in a variety of ways, including by trying to jam the so-called SAVE America Act down the throats of the American people. Now, thankfully, Leader Schumer and Senate Democrats have made clear the bill is dead on arrival. And if the President tries to do any of this unilaterally, just as we’ve successfully done before, we will sue him, take it all the way up to the Supreme Court and I’m confident that we will win.
REV. AL SHARPTON: We lost Reverend Jesse Jackson this weekend. You know, you’ve been a member of the National Action Network for years, seen him there, know he’s been a central mentor to me. What are your thoughts on his life and legacy coming at this time in our nation’s history?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, he’s an incredible and real-life American hero. Through the force of his intellect, his advocacy, his character, his courage, his commitment, of course, has left America a more just place than the one that he’s found. Of course, we still have to march toward a more perfect union, and a lot of work needs to be done, but he’s shown us the way. And as you said, Rev, leaves behind such a tremendous legacy of his life’s work and leaders such as yourself, of course, who was very close to Reverend Jackson and mentored by him to continue the Civil Rights Movement efforts to bring about liberty and justice for all, equal protection under the law and make America the best version of herself. And so, we’ll continue to be inspired by him. There are four Black senators who stand on the shoulders of Reverend Jesse Jackson. When he began this work in the 1960s, of course, there were zero. There are about 55 African American Members of the House of Representatives. When he began this work in the mid-1960s, there were less than five. Now, there are at least 55. And so, we’re thankful for all that Reverend Jackson has done, what he’s meant, his inspirational leadership. And we continue to stand on his shoulders as we move forward to deal with the national nightmare that exists right now in the United States of America, and to show up and stand up and speak up for what Reverend Jackson fought for, what you fight for, Rev, in order to bring about a more perfect union.
REV. AL SHARPTON: I’m out of time, but one last question. Speaker Johnson has denied a request from Reverend Jackson’s family and others that he be allowed to lie in state in the Capitol. It’s reported the Speaker based his decision on a precedent in which the honor has been mostly restricted to government and military officials. Do you think an exception was deserved in this case, Leader Jeffries?
LEADER JEFFRIES: We certainly, as Democrats in the House, strongly supported an exception being made. We understand, of course, that tradition has it that in most instances, the honor is reserved for former presidents. But of course, precedent has allowed for instances where Rosa Parks, appropriately, Civil Rights hero, has lied in honor in the Capitol. And Billy Graham has lied in honor as a religious transformational leader. It’s interesting Jesse Jackson is both a Civil Rights leader and a transformational religious figure. And it was at least our view that if there was any instance where an exception was merited, it would be in the case of Reverend Jesse Lewis Jackson, Sr. But we’re gonna continue to work with the family to make sure there are other appropriate ways to honor his life, his leadership and his legacy in Washington, D.C.
REV. AL SHARPTON: Alright, thank you very much, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Full interview can be watched here.
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